Doctors offer advice on speaking to children about shooting

Child experts in New Hampshire are giving some helpful, age-appropriate tips to guide parents through the tragedy in Connecticut.

Joann Cobb, with the Child and Family Services, said it’s OK to protect young children from the news on television. She urged parents not to force the issue, unless the children talked about it first.

"If the child is really young, you don’t want to bring up the subject at all, you know. Young (children), I mean under 6, you don’t really want to talk about it at all unless they bring it up to you," Cobb said.

Cobb said parents can offer age-appropriate explanations and reassurances.

Older children, on the other hand, can have different needs, said Dr. Kevin Becker, a psychologist specializing in trauma and crisis intervention.

"As children are a little bit older, they may need to talk about it a little more and be reassured that steps are taken in their neighborhood to keep them safe," Becker said.

Experts said parents should validate feelings if children bring it up, allow them to talk about it even if time has already passed and keep the family routine normal. Experts also advise that children may need more closeness, more hugs from parents and more focus on the safety in their own lives so they feel secure.

"It’s helpful for the parents to focus on the positive things, the things that the kids did to keep themselves safe, how they listened to police, how police were there so quickly, how they ran out of the school. (Focus on) all the positive aspects of the event, as opposed to the gruesome facts," Becker said.

Experts said parents can also reassure children that the students at Sandy Hook Elementary are being cared for by loving parents.

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